Chapter 61

The bailiff said as he walked, "Ten candidates form a group, and three groups are admitted each year. Five scholars form a group, and only one group is admitted each year. Both scholars and candidates can study for three years, after which they must leave. The State Literary Academy holds an examination for candidates every year. Those who rank in the top five will enter the Jingguo Academy in the capital. There, not only are there candidates and scholars from our country, but also candidates and scholars from other countries who come to study, as well as the descendants of the Holy Families."

Fang Yun listened to the bailiff's introduction while looking around the State Literary Academy. He had only been to the officials' office before, and this was his first time visiting the school area.

It was like a garden, with small bridges over flowing water, long corridors, and short pavilions. The air was fragrant with flowers, and the trees were lush, as if completely detached from the world's noise, returning to the tranquility of nature.

Fang Yun nodded; this was the place for reading.

The two of them walked along the pebble path, circled around a rockery, and saw a round archway with the words "Ink Fragrance" written on it.

"This is the Ink Fragrance Hall, where the first group of scholars is located."

The Ink Fragrance Hall was a courtyard, with a red-roofed pavilion in the middle, lush vegetation on both sides, and a very ordinary house with black tiles and white walls in front. The door was open, and inside were desks, chairs, and students.

After a few steps, Fang Yun heard the students inside talking.

"Teacher, is Fang Yun really coming to our class? I love his poem 'End of the Year,' which directly points to the officials, making everyone feel good."

"I love 'The Inscription of a Humble Abode' the most. I have it hung in my study and recite it every morning and before bed. Even my wife can recite it."

Fang Yun was taken aback but then thought about how early people got married in ancient times and felt relieved.

"From now on, Fang Yun will be your classmate. His reputation has spread throughout the ten countries, so you five must not look down on him because he is a child candidate."

"Teacher, do you think we are bookworms? We don't have a grudge against Liu Zicheng like he does. We can't wait to make friends with him, how could we look down on him?"

"Bookworms respect him even more, right, Wen Dai?"

"Fang Yun's talent surpasses mine a hundred times, so I naturally respect him greatly."

Fang Yun didn't expect to be discussed even before he entered. He walked to the door and lightly coughed.

The door was open, and a middle-aged man and five young people looked over.

The bailiff bowed slightly and said, "Mr. Jiang Lang, all the scholars, this is Fang Yun."

"Fang Yun greets everyone." Fang Yun didn't know how to address the six people, ranging from teenagers to those in their thirties, with such a wide age gap.

Two of the scholar students suddenly stood up from their chairs and walked over with smiles.

Both young men wore dark blue scholar robes, with bamboo leaves embroidered at the collar and cuffs, clearly different from the willow leaves on Fang Yun's clothes.

"Fang Shuangjia, you're finally here! Your poem 'End of the Year' is excellent, a true role model for us scholars! I'm Lu Yu, the same age as you, sixteen." Lu Yu had clear features and a baby face, and his smile was very cheerful.

The young scholar beside him said, "I'm Ning Zhiyuan, seventeen this year. I love your 'The Inscription of a Humble Abode' the most."

"Brother Lu, Brother Ning." Fang Yun politely bowed.

The teacher behind the lectern said kindly, "I am the lecturer of the State Literary Academy. You can call me Mr. Wang. Li Yunchong, you three should also introduce yourselves. From today on, you are classmates."

A young man with thick eyebrows stood up, not smiling, and bowed to Fang Yun. "Li Yunchong from Dayuan Prefecture, I have long heard of your reputation. If Liu Zicheng makes things difficult for you, count me in."

"Thank you, Brother Li."

The other two also introduced themselves. One was Du Shudai, somewhat rigid but not hiding his admiration for Fang Yun. The other was Tang Shanye, a very ordinary person with a kind smile.

These five were the top five from last year's prefectural examination, with Li Yunchong being the top scholar, known as a Maocai in the Holy Yuan Continent.

Fang Yun remembered the names of the five and felt they were all good people. None of them were jealous or questioned his reputation; they all genuinely praised him, which was the most normal attitude for scholars in the ten countries.

Li Yunchong and the other three were older, so they were not very proactive, while Lu Yu and Ning Zhiyuan were very interested in Fang Yun and asked him questions without caring that Mr. Wang was there.

Mr. Wang didn't mind and gestured for them to continue.

Fang Yun had no choice but to patiently answer the questions of these two fans.

Although Li Yunchong and the other three didn't speak, they were very interested in Fang Yun's story and listened with great interest, not at all like they were in class.

After getting to know each other a bit, Ning Zhiyuan asked expectantly, "We all heard the thunderous holy sound and the half-saint say you have great talent and passed the holy selection, but we don't know what happened. Can you tell us the details?"

Fang Yun looked helplessly at Mr. Wang, who said, "Don't look at me, continue. I want to hear too."

Everyone laughed.

Fang Yun realized this class was completely different from ordinary primary schools, with a very relaxed atmosphere. After all, the top five scholars from the prefectural examination had a high chance of passing the imperial examination in the future, and would be on par with Mr. Wang, so he naturally wouldn't act like a strict teacher.

Fang Yun slowly recounted the process of the holy selection.

When he mentioned Wei Yuanjun requesting the half-saint to test Fang Yun's holy principles, all six people were angry. When he mentioned Li Weng killing Wei Yuanjun, everyone said it was well-deserved, even Mr. Wang.

After Fang Yun finished, Li Yunchong coldly said, "Fang Yun, be careful. The gentry of Dayuan Prefecture know Liu Zicheng's evil reputation. Now that you have the attention of a half-saint and a mysterious teacher, he won't dare to touch you. But if you have any problems, he will definitely try to kill you. Fortunately, you offended Liu Zicheng, not Liu Zizhi, or you would probably be dead. The Liu family, old and young, are all ruthless."

"Thank you for the warning, Brother Li," Fang Yun said.

Lu Yu added, "His older brother, Liu Zizhi, is decisive and ruthless, but he doesn't have a bad reputation and wouldn't do despicable things. Liu Zicheng is different; he would do anything despicable."

Fang Yun nodded.

Fang Yun spoke for over an hour, and Mr. Wang let everyone rest for a moment before leaving. Soon, Mr. Wang returned, saying he would continue the lesson.

Fang Yun thought the class would be like the clan school, with different teachers for different subjects, but then realized Mr. Wang was a candidate, and Jiangzhou only produced about thirty to forty candidates a year, so not many candidates would be willing to teach students.

Mr. Wang was going to lecture on the classics, and to ensure Fang Yun understood, he asked him some questions about the classics.

Fang Yun had almost read all the classic textbooks, with a theoretical foundation stronger than all the scholars present, and even comparable to candidates. He answered the questions fluently.

Mr. Wang started with basic questions but eventually asked some that even scholars found difficult, and Fang Yun could still answer them.

The five scholar classmates looked at Fang Yun as if he were a monster, knowing the difficulties of advancing from a child candidate to a scholar.

Lu Yu whispered, "His grasp of the classics is no worse than ours, which means he can already pass the scholar examination. Even ranking in the top ten of the prefectural examination wouldn't be a problem."

"It's been less than a month since the county examination ended, and he has learned so much. Is this what they call innate knowledge?"

Mr. Wang was increasingly pleased and said with a smile, "Good! Sit down. You are the top child candidate in the world for the holy words and poetry. Even if you only get a C- in the classics, you can still pass the scholar examination. With your current level, you can get at least a C+. I don't need to change my teaching content for you. As for the future policy discussions, you can skip them and focus on self-study of the classics. You can learn policy discussions after passing the scholar examination."

Next, Mr. Wang used a classic question from last year's state examination, "Self-quiet, people offer themselves to the former king," to teach how to write about the classics.

Fang Yun knew this phrase was from "The Book of Documents: Wei Zi," which translates to: "Self-determined, people offer themselves to the former king." This chapter describes Wei Zi, the eldest brother of King Zhou of Shang, seeking advice from his teachers on what to do as the Shang dynasty was about to fall. In the end, Wei Zi chose to flee. After the fall of the Shang dynasty, he was pardoned by King Wu of Zhou and became the first ruler of the state of Song.

Fang Yun listened carefully to Mr. Wang's explanation and found that while Mr. Wang's theoretical knowledge was not as strong as those who wrote guidebooks on the classics, his examples and details were better. After all, a book can only say so much, while Mr. Wang could say whatever he wanted.

After analyzing the question, Mr. Wang asked the six to solve it in their own way and submit their answers for him to comment on.

Fang Yun had been practicing solving questions for a while and had already made some progress.

After commenting on the first five, Mr. Wang read Fang Yun's answer: "The departure and death of a gentleman are for the sake of the country and the world, not for personal gain. Therefore, those who die are not seeking fame, and those who live are not avoiding trouble, but rather they withdraw to seek a way out..."

After reading the few hundred words of the answer, Mr. Wang looked at Fang Yun for a long time without speaking.

The scholars beside him also looked surprised.

Li Yunchong, who had been silent, finally asked, "Fang Yun, are you really a child candidate? Not a scholar?"

"Is it that surprising?" Fang Yun was taken aback by their reaction.

Mr. Wang sighed and said, "It seems there really are people who are born with knowledge. Regardless of other things, just for solving the question, you have the talent of a top scholar in the state."

Fang Yun said, "Teacher, you flatter me. I have been studying the classics these days and received guidance from County Magistrate Cai for a few days, so I had a moment of inspiration and wrote this. If you give me four or five questions to solve, I would be at a loss."

"That's true. But now I am reassured. The classics are vast, and solving questions is the most important part. Even if you got this one by chance, it still proves that you not only have talent in poetry but also in the classics. Remembering your words